This invention relates to a drug filling machine used in a pharmacy or a hospital, vials, and a method of inspecting drugs. More specifically, the invention concerns a drug filling machine which separately keeps a plurality of kinds of drugs such as tablets and capsules and which can automatically fill a vial with drugs of a designated kind by a designated amount, vials suitable for use with this drug filling machine, and a method of inspecting drugs sealed in these vials.
This type of drug filling machine is disclosed in the U.S. Pat. No. 5,337,919 to Gregory et al. This apparatus has a vial supply assembly. A vial supplied from the vial supply assembly is fed to one of a plurality of dispenser units, where it is filled with drugs. The vial filled with drugs is placed on a rotary conveyor.
Prescription drug label data are printed on a label. These data include the name and amount of drugs, directions for use, name of the pharmacist in charge, name of the recipient. The label is then stuck on the vial.
Drugs put in the vial are inspected while referring to the data printed on the label to check if they are right drugs.
After putting drugs into the vial, its mouth is usually not closed until the drugs therein are inspected. Thus, the vial containing drugs may sometimes be left with its mouth kept open for a rather long period of time. During this period, potentially hazardous foreign matter may mix into the vial. It is also hygienically unfavorable to leave the mouth of the vial kept open for a long time.
The simplest solution to this problem is to cap the mouth of the vial immediately after filling it with drugs. But this cap has to be removed later when inspecting the drugs in the vial. This adds to the trouble of inspection work.
In such a case, it is an ordinary practice to close the mouth of a vial with a transparent sheet as soon as necessary drugs are put in the vial to prevent the entry of foreign matter. After inspecting the contents of the vial, a doctor or a pharmacist puts a cap on the vial. An ordinary cap may however be uncapped erroneously by e.g. a kid who might break the transparent sheet and drink the content. Thus, it is preferable to provide a locking means which can lock the cap.
Such a locking means includes a cylindrical portion protruding downward from the cap and adapted to be inserted into the top of the vial. Thus, it is necessary that the transparent sheet be suitably shaped so as to receive the cylindrical portion of the cap when the cap is put on the vial.
On the label of each vial, only the data on directions for use should be printed. But heretofore, data used by pharmacists and doctors when inspecting the contents of vials were also printed on the label. The latter data are not only unnecessary for patients but can confuse them.
It is thus preferable to print the latter data, i.e. data to be used by pharmacists and doctors, on an area of the vial separate from the label. More preferably, such data are removed after inspection by pharmacists and doctors. Further, in large pharmacies and hospitals, it is necessary to fill, inspect and distribute drugs with high efficiency and high accuracy.
An object of this invention is to provide an arrangement with which the vial can be sealed with a transparent sheet to prevent any foreign matter from entering the vial and it is possible to prevent any children from opening the cap, breaking the transparent sheet and drinking the content of the vial, and which can print data to be used by pharmacists and doctors separately from data printed on the label of each vial to prevent confusion of patients.
Another object of this invention is to provide an arrangement which can fill, inspect and pack drugs with high efficiency.
According to this invention, there is provided a drug packaging device comprising feeders for feeding different kinds of drugs stored therein to different vials, and a sealing means for sealing the mouth of a vial with a transparent sheet after necessary drugs have been fed from the feeders in the vial. The sealing means includes a sheet presser for pushing the transparent sheet into the mouth of the vial to form a sealing sheet having a tray-shaped section, a cutter for cutting the transparent sheet into a predetermined shape before or after the sheet has been pushed into the vial by the sheet presser, and a heater for fusing the transparent sheet to the top end of the vial to seal the mouth of the vial after the sheet has been pushed into the vial.
By sealing the mouth of the vial with the transparent sheet, it is possible to prevent foreign matter from mixing into the vial. It is possible to visually check the contents of the vial through the transparent sheet.
Since the sealing sheet has a tray-like shape adapted to the shape of the cap, the cap can be locked without fear of breaking the sealing sheet. Thus it is possible to prevent the breakage of the sheet e.g. by a child.
By printing data used when checking the drugs in the vials on the transparent sheet, it is possible to quickly check the drugs inside. Since these data are printed separately from the data intended for patients printed on the label, patients will not be confused by the former data.
By using a transparent sheet comprising a sealing area for sealing the mouth of the vial, and a printing area protruding from the edge of the mouth of the vial, it is possible to more easily check the contents of the vial through such a transparent sheet.
Also, by providing a tear line along the boundary between the sealing area and the printing area, the printing area can be cut off after inspection so as not to provide unnecessary data to patients.
The drug filling machine according to this invention may further comprise a vial storage means that separately stores a plurality of different kinds vials, a designating means for designating a kind of vials to be filled with drugs, a vial dispensing means for discharging a vial of the kind designated by the designating means from the vial storage means, a detecting means for detecting the mouth of the vial discharged by the vial dispensing means, and a vial erecting means for adjusting the position of the vial discharged based on the output from the detecting means so that the vial is erected with its mouth looking upward by the time drugs are put into the vial. This machine can select and supply a vial according to the amount of drugs discharged.
This machine may further comprise a judging means for determining the kind of vial discharged by the vial dispensing means, and a means for eliminating the vial discharged by the vial dispensing means if the kind determined by the judging means differs from the kind designated by the designating means. With this arrangement, even if a wrong vial is selected from among a plurality of kinds of vials stored in the vial storage means, it is possible to eliminate such a wrong vial before filling drugs therein.
This drug filling machine may further comprise a sealing means for sealing a plurality of vials filled with drugs in an envelope, and a printing means for printing data on the drugs in the vials sealed in the envelope on the envelope. Typically, the patient""s name and address are printed on the envelope.
The sealing means according to the present invention comprises a means for pushing the transparent sheet into the vial, a cutter for cutting the transparent sheet, and a heater for fusing the transparent sheet to the mouth of the vial. When pushed into the vial, the sheet is recessed like a tray. In this state, the sheet is cut and fused to the mouth of the vial.
Other features and objects of the present invention will become apparent from the following description made with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: